At Last
by dantesdarkqueen
Summary: Finally, he's ready to show her how he feels. CloTi, lemony goodness abounds!


**Summary: **Finally, he's ready to show her how he feels. CloTi, lemony goodness abounds!

**Disclaimer: **Yeah, I wish I owned them. If I did, there wouldn't have been any doubt in Advent Children as to Cloud's feelings for Tifa. Nothing X or M-rated, but still something concrete and defining. Since there isn't, I obviously don't own them.

**Queen's Quornor: **I really think that something physical did happen under the Highwind between Cloud and Tifa. I mean, Tifa's reaction to the knowledge that everybody was back before they were kinda tells you _something _happened between them. But I have been wondering 'what would go on in the future if nothing did happen?' So I'm putting my beliefs on that scene aside to write this. And just for a few friends of mine, I put in a few things that should make them really happy. You'll know them when you see them, guys! Also, this doesn't tie in with any of my previous fics.

At Last

Sheets rustled gently, breaking the silence shrouding the darkened room. Tifa arched against her fingers, rubbing slowly between her legs, biting her lip so neither Marlene nor Denzel would hear her cry out.

_Cloud..._

One hand snaked up her torso to her mouth. She licked and sucked at her fingers, moistening them, then sent them back down to twist and pull at her nipples. Her hips rocked in response to he need pulsing within her.

_Cloud._

Visions of the handsome blond filled her mind, and the ache in her body, the desire to be filled, grew ever stronger. She wanted him. She _needed _him. But he was so far away.

_Come back to me, Cloud._

Two fingers inside her, another circling over her sensitive bud, tracing her sopping folds. Her long legs were splayed wide, exposing her to the moonlight streaming through the window. Thinking of him, pretending her fingers were his, Tifa slowly gave herself to the fires that consumned her.

_Cloud!_

The climax rolled over her like a wave, sending her hips twisitng high as she fought the urge to scream in ecstasy. The only sound that escaped her was a high, keening whimper when finally she relaxed back against the pillows, panting for air.

Cloud had been away on deliveries for several days now, after expressing his desire for her with a searing kiss and a whispered promise. "We'll finish that when I get home," he had said, a teasing smile pulling at his lips. Since then, Tifa had been taunted with visions of Cloud lost to passion, of what he might do to her and she to him. Her imagination had gained a new lease on life thanks to his kiss, his words.

But that same imagination left her burning, caught in a conflagration of desire and desperate need. With Cloud away, all she had to ease her hunger were her own fingers.

_Dammit, Cloud_, she thought, turning onto her side and hugging her pillow. _How could you make a promise like that and then just leave me here like this?_

She was starting to wonder if it was possible to die from sheer unsatisfied lust.

Tifa huffed in frustration, her hair fanning high with the force of her breath, then pulled the sheet high about her waist to tuck beneath her arms. She relaxed into sleep, images of a handsome blond swordsman beckoning her into the realm of dreams.

* * *

Cloud brushed his bangs out of his eyes and shut the garage door behind him, ignoring the soreness of his feet as he unlocked the back door and went inside. Fenrir had run out of fuel five miles outside Edge, and Cloud had been forced to either abandon his custom-made bike, along with all of the swords contained within it, or wheel it back home on-foot.

On-foot had taken a lot longer than he'd thought. Even moreso, since he'd stopped to take care of...certain needs twice along the way.

Since making that promise to Tifa before this trip, the swordsman had been thinking about what would happen when he made good on it. He'd loved Tifa for quite some time now, though he couldn't find the words to express his feelings to her. The most he was capable of at the moment was showing her how he felt, without words. He had shown her a little bit three years ago, beneath the Highwind, but not as he was planning now. He had been too shy, too uncertain, almost afraid to touch her back then. More a boy than a man, despite his age.

But now, he was finally ready. Ready to show her that he loved her, that he could be a man. That he was capable of taking care of her needs, just as she always had his.

Glancing up at the clock, he realized that it was almost two in the morning and mentally cursed his luck once more. Tifa was surely asleep by now. He'd have to wait until tommorow before he could show her his love. Now very annoyed with his bike, Cloud gingerly went upstairs, careful to avoid the squeaky step. Even if, by some small miracle, Tifa was still awake, the kids most definitely were not.

The first place he went was the bathroom. He was filthy, and sore; a hot shower was just what the doctor ordered. After scrubbing himself down, he shut off the water and reached for a towel.

His groping hand smacked into the towelbar, but no soft, fluffy towel hung there. Looking out from behind the shower curtain, Cloud realized belatedly that there weren't any towels in the bathroom.

_Perfect... Exactly how my day should end. Fenrir runs out of fuel, I have to wheel it home, it's really late, Tifa's asleep, and now there's no towel. _He threw his head back, staring at the ceiling. _What did I do to deserve this?_

He was left with a couple of options. The first was to simply drip dry in the stall. Nope. It was October; he was already cold and would just get colder if he stood here.

Option two: dry off using his discarded clothes. Also not going to happen. His clothes were still dirt-bag filthy, and smelled of fuel. He wasn't going to touch those, not fresh out of the shower.

The third option: dry off with a towel from the clothes hamper. Cloud's reply to that idea? _Ewww._

That left sneaking down the hallway naked and getting a towel from Tifa's room. By some fluke in the blueprints he and Barret had drawn up before building the new 7th Heaven (probably due to sheer inexperience with designing architecture), the linen closet had been built in Tifa's bedroom.

_Gods, I hope neither Denzel nor Marlene need a drink of water or something._

After drying his feet on the bathmat, Cloud cautiously opened the door and peeked out. The hallway was dark and quiet, empty. The kids' door was closed, and Tifa's likewise shut. Though only a few feet away, her room seemed removed from his current position by roughly five miles.

Shivering softly, Cloud steeled his courage and went out into the hallway, hands over his groin. Nude and alone as he was, he still felt the need to preserve what remained of his modesty.

_Sure hope neither Zack nor Aerith decied to drop in for a chat before I'm decent._

The few steps it took to go past his bedroom door and get to Tifa's stretched on and on, each moment in the hallway absolute torture to the naked swordsman. But at long last he reached her door, turned the knob, and ducked inside.

Tifa was asleep, as expected. But contrary to his expectations, she was quite naked beneath her blanket. Due to the arm wrapped around her pillow, he could clearly see the side of one milky breast, pressing into the mattress beneath her.

Cloud froze, staring at her, then became aware of a new scent in the air. Something musky and faint, but also delicately sweet and enticing. And it was coming from Tifa.

He swallowed, breathing in the nameless scent. She must have been experimenting with some new perfume or something. Whatever it was, it smelled heavenly to his enhanced senses.

Tearing his gaze away from the sleeping woman, Cloud went to the linen closet and pulled out a towel. He watched Tifa as he dried off, considering her thoughtfully. Watching the moonlight wash over her glossy brown hair and illuminate her ivory flesh.

He loved her. He desired her.

But she was sleeping.

Tifa stirred then, and Cloud froze, thinking that she had awoken. But she remained in slumber. Her movement had been caused by a dream. As the swordsman watched, one arm unwound from her pillow, obscuring his view of her breast. But he soon realized what her dream must consist of; the wandering hand slipped beneath the blanket and her legs shifted as her hips lifted.

Cloud's mouth went dry, and he felt his body stir to life as realization hit. Tifa was masturbating in her sleep.

As he stood there, watching her touch herself, he gradually came to realize that the mysteriously alluring scent was growing stronger. Watching her hips move beneath the blanket, the source of the lovely perfume was revealed to him.

Tifa. It was the scent of her passion.

Zack had told him that every woman had a different scent, and that to the right man it could be as effective as an aphrodisiac in gaining his interest, his arousal. A SOLDIER, with senses enhanced beyond normal boundaries, could smell a woman's unique scent more easily than the average man. He had complained that sometimes, if a woman had been having sex or playing with herself, her scent would be enough to give him a hard-on just by walking past him.

Tifa... Playing with herself again and again...

_Because of me?_

The idea finished the process Tifa's actions and perfume had begun, bringing him fully erect and ready. He'd left her wanting, so hungry for his touch that she had to turn to her own multiple times.

_Let me make it up to you, Tifa._

Cloud dropped the towel and went to her, climbing on the bed behind her and slipping one arm around her to palm one soft breast, the other tracing up her unoccupied arm to weave his fingers between hers. Pulling her flush against his body, the swordsman pressed a hot kiss to her bare shoulder, willing her to wake up.

* * *

Tifa dreamt of Cloud. Once again, they were together beneath the Highwind. But they were not merely holding each other, exchanging soft kisses; they were rolling about in a passionate embrace, clothes thrown all around them, mouths fused together. Cloud's fingers were between her legs, preparing her to receive him. She gasped and groaned, pleasure racing through her veins like sparkling fire, and threaded her digits through his blond spikes.

"Cloud," she groaned. "Take me. Please!"

"With pleasure," he chuckled, pulling back to look into her eyes. "But you need to wake up first."

Tifa blinked. "Huh? Cloud, I am awake."

A phantom kiss on her shoulder, even as he continued to smile at her. "No, you're not."

"Cloud?"

The grassy field slowly melted away. Cloud and the Highwind vanished in glittering particles of wind-blown dust. But the chill of the night was replaced by sweet heat. Tifa shifted restlessly, feeling pressure at her back and on her breasts, fingers between her fingers. She came fully awake then, realizing that she wasn't alone in her bed.

But before she could react, the hand on her breast moved to her chin and turned her head, allowing her to see a familiar, welcome face crowned by golden spikes.

"Cloud..." she whispered.

He nodded, then raised up enough to press his lips to hers. Tifa responded eagerly, opening her mouth to him and taking her hand from beneath her legs to clutch at his hair, her fingers tightening on his.

_Finally_.

She'd waited so long. Now that he was ready, she wasn't letting him slip away if he changed his mind. Not after so much waiting, so much anticipation. Not after years of longing, days of dreaming.

Cloud rolled her onto her back, removing his fingers from hers only to replace them with the digits of his opposite hand. Still kissing her, his free hand slid down to softly squeeze her breasts, to stroke and rolls the nipples. Tifa whimpered into his mouth; she was still wet from her earlier climaxes, ready to receive him. And he was hard enough to take her. She could feel the heated stiffness of him, pressed between their bodies.

"Cloud!" she gasped, tearing her mouth away from his. "I'm ready! Don't make me wait any longer, please!"

He looked at her, still fondling her breast. "Are you sure, Tifa? I don't want to hurt you."

She looked him squarely in the eye. "I nearly died on our journey more times than I care to remember. I've been beaten up, stabbed, slashed, clawed, bitten, stung, shot, burned, electrocuted, frozen, dropped, and torn open. I don't know how much this will hurt, but it couldn't be any worse than anything I've already gone through." She spread her legs and pressed her hips to his, tearing a strangled groan from the man above her. "Just...hold me while you do it, okay?"

Glowing sapphire eyes searched her face, then he nodded. He raised himself, kissing her as he reached down to position himself at her entrance. That done, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her once, softly. Drawing back, he looked into her wine-dark eyes, finding courage therein that he never dreamt he would find.

"I love you," he said simply.

"I know," she replied.

With a deep breath, he began to press into her, slowly forcing his body inside hers. Tifa focused on his eyes, allowing herself to drown in those glowing oceans of perfect azure. His penetration was uncomfortable, but not as painful as Aerith had led her to believe. The arm around her, the love in his eyes, would not allow pain to come.

Then it was done. Tifa could feel the heated solidity of him inside her, the rapid tempo of his pulse. She exhaled slowly, feeling him kiss her with exquisite tenderness.

She was his.

"Are you okay?" he asked, reaching up to stroke her cheek.

"I'm fine." Tifa arched slightly, trying to get a bit more comfortable. This action brought her hips and breasts tight against his body, causing Cloud to suck in his breath. His reaction did not escape Tifa, and a seductive smile spread across her lips. "Let's get on with it, Cloud."

Cloud stared at her, then smirked. "As you wish," he replied, drawing his hips back and driving them forward. He thrust slowly, cautious of hurting her. Thanks to Zack, he knew how to please a woman. But he didn't have the personal experience to know when to speed up, to slow down, or go harder. Tifa wasn't the only one who had decided to save herself for the one she loved.

He didn't really need raw experience here, however, Tifa had shed her usual shy demeanor and was currently clutching him to her, kissing him fiercely with more tongue than he had anticipated. Cloud, still slowly pistoning in and out of her body, nearly jumped as her nails raked down his ass.

"Harder," she moaned. "Please, Cloud... Harder."

Cloud grunted an affirmative and picked up the pace, thrusting with greater force and speed. Tifa certainly appreciated it; her moans grew louder, to the point that Cloud began to fear she would awaken Marlene and Denzel.

"Tifa..." he groaned, feeling her tighten around him. "Keep it down... Kids..."

"Cloud, I'm close!" Tifa gasped, pulling him closer to her.

The swordsman was close too, and he wanted them to come together. But the kids were fairly light sleepers, and the last thing he wanted was for one of them to walk through the door and see them like this.

A tip from Zack came to mind then, and Cloud claimed Tifa's mouth in a scorching kiss as he thrust even harder into her willing body. Just in time; Tifa's body locked down on his and she arched high against him, screaming into his mouth. The pressure and the sight of his beautiful Tifa lost to passion proved Cloud's undoing, and he wrapped his arms around her tightly as his body took over, pumping his fertile seed deep within his woman.

They collapsed into the mattress, panting heavily. Cloud wearily laid a soft kiss against Tifa's cheek, and Tifa held him in arms that trembled with exhaustion. After long minutes of recovery, the swordsman rolled them onto their sides, still holding her in his arms.

"I didn't lie to you, Tifa," he confessed, stroking some hair away from her face. "I do love you. I have for a long time. I just couldn't find the words to tell you before."

Tifa reached up and took his hand away from her face, entwining their fingers once more. "You didn't have to tell me, Cloud. I already knew. That night under the Highwind, you showed me how you felt." She brought their hands up to kiss his knuckles. "I still appreciate the words, though. And you should know that I love you. I always have. I didn't think you were ready to heat that before."

"I am now." Cloud squeezed her fingers softly, curling his other arm possessively around her. "I'm not a boy anymore, and I've got my mind back in one piece. I can be the man you deserve, Tifa. And I want to be."

"You don't have to be the man I deserve." Tifa kissed him again, gazing deep into his eyes. "Just be the man you are. He's the one I love, not this perfect man you think I want." She snuggled against him, leaning her head against his collarbone. "I don't care what other people think. You're the man that I love, Cloud. Only you."

Cloud smiled and kissed her hair, bringing her closer to his body. "And you're the only woman I've ever loved. You had my heart long before I met Aerith. And someday, I'll give you my name as well."

He waited for her reply, but none came. Cloud realized belatedly that Tifa had fallen asleep. Disentangling his hand from hers he reached down to pull the blanket up over them, then took her hand again. Holding his beloved Tifa close, the swordsman followed her into the peace of exhausted sleep.


End file.
